upcycle

Upcycle/Recycle – LisamariesPiece

Posted on by Tisha

Meet LisaMarie from LisamariesPiece.  She has always had an affection for vintage jewelry.  Her store reminds me of raiding my grandma’s jewelry box to play dress up when I was younger.

*Tell me a bit about you and your Etsy shop.
I’ve always been crafty and in love with making things with my hands. My jewelry and Etsy shop came to be when my family life changed. The economy had its affect on our family, and my husband joined the US Army. Needless to say; moving was a way of life. My mind needed a release, as well as much needed peace. With a play on words, LisamariesPiece was born.

*How did you get started using upcycled/recycled products?
At a young age, I was one of those rare kids that love going antiquing. Antiquing is a gift my parents never knew they gave me. At the time, I remember being drawn to the jewelry cases, but what was I going to do with old brooches and hat pins? I know the answer to that question now.

*What do you like the most about using those products?
It may seem weird, but I love holding the pieces in my hands above all. They were once special to someone. Each brooch, each earring, each bracelet has a story. I pick up a piece, and I know exactly what I am going to do with it.

*What do you like the least? Challenges?
I love what I do. I think I love it so much because no one is telling me how and when I make a piece. The biggest challenge is me having to put down and stop a piece because it’s 2am. I tend to create at night.

*How do you find inspiration?
My inspiration is new life. I’ve had a second chance with life, friends, and family. I drew great humility from my new life. Everything and everyone deserves a second chance.

*What feedback do you have from others about using these products?
My best feedback actually comes BEFORE the purchase. I receive private messages from women telling me that they love a particular hair comb or cuff and that they intend on wearing it in their wedding. A great sense of happiness washes over me because someone loves a piece enough to make it part of a special episode of their lives.

Her favorite item:

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Upcycled Veggie Bags

Posted on by Tisha

I had seen these in person last summer from Katie at an Indy Modern meeting.  While playing around on pinterest one day I found a tutorial on how to make them.  Good thing hubby had recently gone through his t-shirts to get the project started.

Can’t show you pics of the before shirts, they are not appropriate.

Here is the tutorial.

My only suggestion or tip is to not cut right down near the bottom.  Leave about an inch or so from the bottom of the bag with no cuts.  My potatoes almost fell out this weekend.

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Dresser Makeover

Posted on by Tisha

Hubby and I, well okay mostly me, have been wanting to makeover our bedroom.  When you move into a house, you have an idea of how you will use it, but after a while it becomes apparent it’s time for a change.  We needed a new dresser and night stand to really complete our room.  Have you seen the prices of those pieces of furniture?  Yeah, not going to convince either of us to pay that.

My mom reminded me that my parents had a dresser and nightstand in storage.  Okay, they are oak and not really my style.  My neighbor recently did a dresser makeover for her guest room and I thought, let’s paint these.

I couldn’t be happier with how it all turned out.  So fitting to have been working on during April with my Upcycle/Recycle  posts.  The color is great and coordinates really well in our room.

 

 

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27 Dresses or something like that

Posted on by Tisha

Last summer I was approached by a friend to do something with bridesmaid’s dresses that were taking up lots of room in her closet.  Okay great, let’s make a memory quilt using the dresses.  There are a variety of fabrics, colors, etc to work with.  The finished product will have lots of embellishments from different aspects of the dresses.  The stack of dresses was quite large, this is a smaller version with the under dresses and most of the non-useable fabric discarded.

My original idea was a quilt as you go but that didn’t go so well.  So I scrapped it.  Back to the design board.  The light purple dress would be a great feature.  Here is a snippet of the blocks.

Hoping to have the quilt completed this week and ready for delivery.

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